They led her by lead to her seat
Strapped her down and gave her a treat
There wasn’t even time for her mother to say goodbye
Before the favourite of her litter blasted into the sky

There she sits, that Labrador Retriever
What would her friends say; they wouldn’t believe her!
That here she’d been, Earth beneath her feet
As she munched on her rations of Baker’s Complete

It sure is quiet, it sure is dark
No passing cars at which to bark
No territory she has to mark
But the life of the Spacedog – it’s no walk in the park

She must’ve realised there was no going home
That she’d never unbury her favourite bone
Those thoughtless scientists: if they could have seen her face
As she drifted about in the coldness of space

Down on Earth, her trainers feel sick
When their thoughts return to little Muttnik
‘Dear comrades’ they say ‘what have we done?’
As they throw out the dog-bowls and Pedigree Chum
They’ll go home tonight, look through telescopes and cry
For the poor puppy, now but a star in the sky

The dog’s fate was sealed; doomed as poor Romeo
Russia’s retriever had eaten its last bowl of Boneo
She lets out a whine, draws her last breath
And daring doggy slips into death.

Back at base, it’s a minor success
But there’s lumps in their throats – they are now dogless
What have they learned? Was it worth the end
Of the nation’s hero, of man’s best friend?

Laika’s playing fetch with the angels, amongst the stars
Remember dog’s die in hot shuttles, as well as hot cars

So pause for a moment, say a prayer, shed a tear
For that mongrel that died in Earth’s atmosphere

After deciding that going to Discord
was a bad idea
and that downing Jager Bombs
and dancing to the same playlist as last week
was not the way to drown my sorrows
I decided to make my way back home
the roads were silent
and air sharp, but cool
as about half way home
I decided to stop for a while
and recover

Up ahead stood the church
where I had once as a child
lain outside
to draw the stain-glass windows
only to discover afterwards
that I’d placed my notepad on top of some cat poo

As I made my way up the path
the motion-detecting lights switched on
and beckoned to me

And so I sat there
in the entrance
very, very early for church
and I stared out at the graffitied wall across the street
and I thought about about God
and about Jesus
and about my short time as a part-time evangelist
and I thought about Amos
and about Moses
and about the Old Testament
and the New
and about me
and how you
had dumped me approximately seven hours and five minutes ago
(and how I was totally over it)
and I wondered
if there really was a god out there
somewhere
in a non-corporeal but-never-the-less-fully-real form
and, almost as if in answer,
the light above switched itself off
and plunged me into total darkness

Staring into the food dispensary I eye up the candidates;
Each stares back with its deceiving, non-degradable eyes,
Taking its time, taking its time.
I can’t decide, I’m overwhelmed with the choice, the easiness
And the lack of interest I can summon.